Flash Flood Safety for Campers (The Danger Under a Clear Sky)

A flash flood is the outdoor hazard most likely to kill someone who did everything else right. It arrives fast, often under a completely clear sky, because the rain that caused it fell somewhere you cannot see.

Never camp in a dry watercourse

Dry riverbeds are flat, sheltered, sandy and free of vegetation. They are the most inviting campsite in dry country and the most dangerous. They are flat and sandy because water moves through them with force.

The same applies to narrow canyons, gullies, and the low ground at the base of slopes.

Rain you cannot see

This is the part that catches people. Rain falling on high ground many kilometres away can send water down a dry channel while the sky above you stays clear. There is no local warning sign at all.

Before camping in dry country, check the forecast for the whole catchment upstream, not just your spot.

Signs water is coming

• A roaring or rumbling sound that does not match the wind
• Water suddenly running muddy, or rising at all
• Debris, foam or branches moving in a channel that was dry
• A distinct smell of wet earth in dry country

If you notice any of these, do not investigate. Move.

Move up and sideways

Go perpendicular to the channel and gain height. Do not run along the channel trying to outpace it — water moves faster than you do, and the whole channel is the danger.

Leave the kit. All of it.

In a vehicle

Never drive into moving water of unknown depth. It takes remarkably little to float a car, and once it floats it goes where the water goes. Most flood deaths involving vehicles happen this way, at crossings the driver had used before.

Turn around and take the long way.

Choosing a site

• High ground, away from channels.
• Not at the base of a slope where runoff concentrates.
• Look at the ground: debris caught in bushes, scoured banks or a clear high-water line tells you exactly how high water has been.
• Know your escape route before dark.